Erk's Aftermath
by Macross-Green
Summary: It's done! After the end of FE7, a certain moody mage reflects on his experiences with a certain pink-haired devil. One-shot, ErkSerra


Erk's Aftermath

Author's Note: Well, I thought I would say thanks to all those who reviewed my other 'Aftermath' fic. So, thanks for reviewing it! I hope that it'll be possible to get the same reviewers for that fic to review this one as well. It should be a bit funnier than the previous one, simply because Guy was never really shown as having much of a fun-loving personality (or much personality besides being unable to keep a job or actually be happy, anyway). As is usually the case, Erk will be with Serra. Opposites attract, after all, and this couple couldn't be any more opposite unless they both belonged to different species! Enjoy!

---

Ah, the joys of solitude. The books of the library were always here though. Never was the young man fully alone, always was he surrounded by his studies. The books took him places- ancient villages and kingdoms. Magic that was no longer fully understood by many. Powers and strength of men and women from years ago. Dragons that sought power or peace. So much knowledge, and not only magic, either. History itself had been written into many of the books within this library. But three years ago...

The young man shuddered. No. I cannot think of that person! It was a memory that remained vivid in my mind, that fateful day he was sent out from the studies of this house in Etruria. "Go and escort a priestess to Ostia." he had been told by Lord Pent. 'See the world, learn on your own,' the lord Pent had said. Books are not the only way to experience life, one must live life while they still can, Lady Louise had said. Bah! Look at where that had gotten him. The priestess had been described as a frail priestess that knew not the way to Ostia. I had expected a young girl, perhaps somewhere between 13-19 years of age. One that could hold up that ideal of a description.

"I should have known better." I muttered to myself, knowing that I didn't mean just the fact that getting a description from Lord Pent was about as accurate as a bard's tale about some event that happened over 20 years ago. I also meant that once he started thinking about that time, I wouldn't be able to get it out of his mind. That was when I met... her. The devil incarnate with pink hair. Oh, sure, she was cute, but is it not said that the devil is the person you least suspect? White robes, the pink hair in pigtails. She carried a staff, and from the blue jewel on top of the staff, it was obviously a Heal staff. Certainly, she was a cleric of Elimine. At first glance, she seemed to fit the description that Lord Pent had given the young mage.

But, as soon as she saw Erk, and had walked up to him, the change began. She bowed, and he returned the bow- so far, so good. He couldn't help the red coloring that appeared upon his cheeks as a result of being close to a cute girl. But then, something disastrous happened as he stood back up. The girl's lips began to move. Slowly at first, in introduction. But after the introductions were over...

---

"Hello! My name is Serra. I am a cleric of Elimine, and I believe you were sent here to escort me to Ostia?" she said to him. It was more of a comment than a question, actually. Before Erk could even manage to speak, the 'priestess' spoke up once more. "Well, you look like the boy that I was told would be here to escort me to Ostia. A boy with purple hair and red cloak, doesn't say much... why yes, I do believe you fit that description quite well! I was told that your name is Erk. Is it? No, don't tell me, I think that is your name. It is a pleasure to meet you, Erk, but I am certain that you are enjoying our meeting more than I- it isn't everyday that a person of your stature meets a beautiful woman like me, after all."

At that point, my ears were red, my face was red, and I could feel my stomach recoiling from this unfortunate shock. What in Elibe had just happened? In mere seconds, this attractive girl, unlikely to be much older than I, had become a loud mouth girl who just simply would not stay her mouth from opening and words from escaping! It was the beginning of a long trek, I realized, and finally managed to introduce myself to the girl. "Yes, my name is Erk. And it is... nice... to meet you, Serra." I said, my dislike for the otherwise attractive girl quickly growing within me.

By Elimine, what had I done to deserve this woman to deal with?

---

Of course, that was only the first time I'd met her. A few days after meeting her, we wound up in some small village outside Caelin. It was wonderful- I think we wandered around in a forest for hours before a group of strangers appeared from the north. In the lead was some brown haired man in green peasant clothing. Beside him was a woman, probably a little older than I was at the time. Long, forest-green hair, and she carried two blades- one an iron sword, and the other of a kind I had never seen before. There were a pair of knights on their horses (cavaliers, I realized), and a pegasus knight as well who was attempting to keep some distance between herself an the green-armored knight. There was a big man that was standing beside a smaller man- the larger was carrying an axe, and the smaller held a bow.

Serra hadn't noticed them yet- she was too busy looking around. And then, suddenly, she got my attention when she turned to face me. "Oooh... We're lost. This makes me so mad!" she exclaimed, stomping her foot on the ground. She very nearly dropped her staff as a result of her anger. I suppose I should have known that she would react this way... even if she had decided to take the lead and provide the path to Ostia. Which was rather strange- I had been told that she knew not the way, but evidently, she was originally from the place we were now headed towards!

"You told me you were certain this was the correct path." I replied, watching her in surprise at the anger that was evident in her eyes. Then she just watched me, as if assessing my sanity. I knew that look quite well by that time- I had been assessing her sanity for the past few days, ever since the first day we had actually met!

"What's your point, Erk?" she asked me, a stern look in her eyes that I had dealt with before from Lady Louise, not so long ago. "What are you trying to say?" she asked another time. She talked so much, so quickly, and so loudly, that I never could quite have a chance to reply before she would speak again.

"...I swear, you are NOT the woman I agreed to escort..." I said, mumbling under my breath. Of course, I didn't think that the little shrew would hear my words. But will wonders never cease? She did!

"What? What's that supposed to mean?" she asked now. Oh... My head was starting to spin and my stomach was not feeling much better, either. Being with her made me feel as if I had gone days without eating or drinking... and not in a good way, either!

"I heard someone was needed to escort a frail Lycian priestess to Ostia..." I said a bit louder, responding to her question as I always did. Dammit all, I guess I was simply a push-over for a cute face (and body). I hadn't much experience with women, either, and Lady Louise wasn't exactly the model for being a woman, to tell the truth. Serra was the first girl I'd really spent more than a day around, and to be quite frank, I wasn't really too sure how to either approach them or deal with them.

"Yes, and I'm that priestess." was her reply, to which I quickly held my hand to my mouth, covering it as I coughed lightly. It was either that or to laugh, and I desperately wanted to do the latter. However, though I may not know how to react towards women or girls in general, I knew how to remain polite when necessary. This was one of those times, that was for certain. Of course, a bit of verbal reparte was in order, and I knew just how to do it, too.

"Frail? You? Serra, you have no need of any escort to protect you." I replied, a smile quickly forming on my face. Oh yes, this little, 'frail' priestess was about to get quite a shock. "Even the most hardened criminal would flee in terror after five minutes in your company." The look on her face was priceless! Her mouth was open, jaw hanging low as she stood there and took the verbal strike. Now was the time I let my feelings known to her about escorting her. "I'll return your money. Gladly. Now, will you please go on to Ostia alone?" I asked her.

The anger I'd seen on her face earlier came back rather quickly. Unfortunately for me, my pride at the verbal tirade I'd thrown at her was soon demolished by her response! "NO! You're MY escort, Erk! MINE! You're so clean and tidy." she countered, screaming at me. My ears were now officially damaged from not only listening to her talk but also from the volume at which she launched her own verbal attack back at me. She took a moment (a very short moment, of course. Her mouth never could be detained for long!) to compose herself, and then spoke again before I could respond (what a surprise...). "A noblewoman like myself can't be seen without a proper escort." she said, and then it was my turn to be shocked. Noblewoman, her? Please! But then she provided the icing on the cake. "Your personality's nothing special, but you're not bad to look at."

I was taken completely off guard by that remark. "I believe that's my line. And I have to take you all the way to Ostia? I only hope my nerves can endure the journey." I replied, my voice still rather low in volume as I looked to the ground. My face was still pretty red as I watched the grassy floor of the forest that we had been lost in for awhile. It was interesting... or at least, I made it seem that way as Serra opened her big mouth again.

"What are you mumbling about?" she asked. Obviously, she hadn't quite heard his comment, which was certainly good for him. "You're so gloomy! Ah... Hm?" and she blinked as she heard something. I looked in the direction she had looked to, and I couldn't help but to shake my head slowly. Oh, she only NOW noticed that there were people over beyond the forest, to the west of here? Great. Maybe I truly did mistake her for the real frail priestess on her way to Ostia? Elimine save me! "Something's happening over there! Let's go take a look!" she cried, and immediately took off towards the group.

"Ah. Of course. The first opportunity to get involved in trouble, and she jumps right in." I said to myself, though loud enough that if someone was to have actually listened to me, they would easily have done so. I sighed softly and shook my head. Again. "No amount of money is worth this. Hoo..."

I found Serra just outside the forest- leave it to following her nose for trouble to lead us out, eh? "Wow! A fight! A fight!" she chattered excitedly. By Elimine, no! She was gonna get us involved too, wasn't she? "Erk! Take a look! Fighting those bandits... It's a young girl!" she exclaimed, and I simply nodded. Well, yeah. I looked to where she was pointing, and of course, it was the same girl that I had noticed earlier. I looked back to her and hissed at her.

"Fool! Keep your voice down!" I told her quietly, but while trying to keep her from raising her voice any more than she already had done. Dammit, too late! I heard a gruff voice, and found a rough-looking bandit coming closer. I pushed Serra aside as he came close, moving in front of the 'frail priestess'. I knew she could probably scare the bandit off with her mouth, but she had become a bit quieter after seeing the archer come towards us.

"Eh, What's this?" he asked. Then, before I could respond (which seems to be a trait that was getting caught by all sorts of people from Serra at the time), he spoke once again. "You in league with that she-devil?"

"Hm?" Serra said, wondering (as I was. Sometimes, it seems that we did think alike) just what the archer was talking about. Of course, with the way Serra often reacted to practically anything and everything, I knew it was just a matter of time before we got involved in something that had nothing to do with us.

"Ah... This is so wrong..." I said, closing my eyes for a moment. 

"Gyaaa! I'll take care of you with one swift stroke!" the archer claimed, and all that could be done was for me to push Serra further away as the mercenary bore in on me. Her shrieking threw off my concentration as I pulled out my tome of Fire, and her cry for help forced me to look to her instead of the mercenary that was bearing in on me. That was a mistake that I couldn't afford.

"So... loud... Serra! Behind me!" I ordered her, and surprisingly enough, she didn't fight my order as she hid behind me. Then, I turned my attention to the mercenary again and glared at him. "You there! See if you can match me!"

---

And so began my journeys with Lady Lyndis. Of course, the 'frail priestess' had forced us to go with the 'mercenary group', but in actuality it was simply an inheritance feud. I have to admit, the experience had been rather enlightening, and I made two friends in the process of the journey. Sain had been a good person- a bit too obsessed with women, to tell the truth, but a good person. Honorable, and he only acted like an idiot at times. His partner, Kent, was a much more serious person than Sain was. Very honorable and quite intelligent, he had a very strategic mind about things. Then there was Caelin's possible heir, the Lady Lyndis. She was a truthful person, honorable as well, and faster than most anyone could ever catch.

Then there was litle Florina. She reminded me of myself, really, though in reverse. She was very shy around men, though for a Pegasus Knight, she spent a lot of time around Wil. He was the archer of the group- not exactly talkative along the lines of Sain, but still. Wil didn't mind spending time around Florina to help her get over her phobia of men, as unlike the rest of the men in the group, he wasn't physically daunting or mentally intimidating. Florina also spent time with me, providing a respite from Serra's constant barrages. That journey actually provided me plenty of experience with other people, more than I'd ever actually had before.

In the end, I had to concede that Lord Pent had been right about journeying. Learning from experience, rather than books, was much more rewarding. However, learning from books had the bonus of not being attacked... or being talked to death by a certain pink haired devil. After the journey to Caelin with Lady Lyndis, I was forced to take the tedious task of escorting Serra all the way to Ostia. Unfortunately, there had been no other problems other than the constant one of, "Are we there yet? How long until we get there? Are you sure we haven't seen this tree before?"

---

I had a year of rest away from the pink haired devil. Unfortunately, it was during my last job that I was 'reunited' with Serra. I was actually working for house Caerleon, providing escort to a young troubador named Priscilla as she journeyed to find clues regarding her missing brother. Someone named Raymond. Seems that she wasn't originally of house Caerleon, but of another house... Cornwall, Cornwell, something like that. I'd never heard of it before. But no, as she was detained in a village just south of Laus castle, I was out searching for help that could get us out of the territory. The damned Marquess Darin wanted her for a wife! He was at least three, if not four times her age (she was even younger than I was!), and the dirty old man just couldn't keep her off his mind.

I couldn't blame him much for that, actually. Priscilla is a very cute girl, but the trouble is that I couldn't stop thinking about the devil herself. Why couldn't I just forget about her? She was loud, obnoxious, and a brat all at the same time. But no... Elimine must be using me as a target for her arrows, for soon enough as I left the northern village, I was stalled by the girl herself. The pink haired horror of Ostia, a 'frail priestess' that couldn't be kept quiet for any amount of time over five seconds. To tell the truth, though... A part of me, a small part of me, was actually glad to see her again. My ears were not that part, however. The rivalry that soon erupted between Priscilla and Serra caused even Sain, whom we soon met up with again, to remain away from both of the combatants.

Everytime I met with Serra was an assault on my ears and my sanity. In camp, thank Elimine, our tactician saw fit to keep our tents gender-specific, so that the women were in the same tents and the men were in other tents. And Mark, the tactician that now is quite famous throughout Elibe, made sure that Serra and Priscilla didn't share a tent. I respect our tactician. The man certainly knew his way around a battlefield, and always had someone around to provide protection for others. Unfortunately, I was often stuck escorting that pink haired devil as she went about, following Mark's orders to heal other fighters in the troop. This time, with Lord Eliwood leading this troop instead of Lyn, there were many other people, though everyone that I had fought with before did join the troop again. At least, in battle, she wasn't as talkative as she usually was outside the battlefield... But then the horror began once more!

---

"Oh, hi there, Erk!" she said to me. It was as if she never noticed that I was beside her practically all the time! This day, we were all in the Nabata desert, fighting against a pair of Warriors that were leading, of all possible types of people, a large number of mages and shamans. Was she crazy? There was a pair of Shaman coming this way, but now she wanted to talk, all of a sudden? My silence must have gotten through to her, because after a short moment, she carried on. Again.

"You should be thanking me. I'm the one who got you into this outfit." she said, and I rolled my eyes. Thanking her like she had expected me to do back when she dragged me into Lyn's group a year before? "In fact, you should be terribly grateful to me!" she exclaimed, looking thoughtful and then expectant as she watched me. What was she, my mother? Why would I be 'terribly grateful' to her? I was somewhat happy to be so close to the girl, to tell the truth. I hope she hadn't noticed in camp that I would often keep an eye on her.

Then I became kind of thoughtful. "...Well, you did introduce me to Lord Eliwood... But that's about it, really. I owe you no special obligation." I replied, and then she looked somewhat sad for a second before that familiar anger replaced the sadness I had seen in her eyes. What an unusual girl!

"That's the most ungrateful thing I've ever heard! You know, Erk, I've been with them longer than you have..." she exclaimed, and then a small smile formed on her face. Oh, no. She'd just gotten some sort of sinister idea, I just knew it. What was sort of deviousness was she contemplating this time? "So, you really should treat me like your superior!"

The startled look in my eyes must have given away what I was thinking, and with Serra's smug look on her face, I couldn't help myself. "...As usual, you use entirely confounding logic. Doesn't Lord Eliwood decide such matters?" I asked her. Dammit. Here we go again.

"Well, he hasn't mentioned it yet, but I'm sure he would agree." she began, and once more I rolled my eyes. I gave her too much credit a moment ago. She doesn't even use the somewhat understandable version of logic that women oftentimes used! Who knows just what kind of logic that this particular woman used? Then again, this was the same person that I'd overheard speaking with Florina about how to talk with men... Florina wound up with a stiff neck after that talk. "After all, I am his close friend and Hector's fiancee!"

".... Well, I've heard enough. Talking to you is just a neverending headache..." I replied, and started walking away. My head was spinning and my ears hurt. Again. By Elimine... I don't know how you can possibly give me enough strength to deal with this woman. Damned Mark... why was he making me continually work with this crazy woman? Still... a small part of me was grateful to the tactician for the opportunity. Was that why I never actually spoke to him about allowing me to stay further away from her than I usually was?

"Hold your tongue, servant! You would speak thus to your lady and liege?" she called after me, and I just waved a hand to her as I continued to walk away. There was nothing more to be said between us, after all. "...Hey! Erk, wait up!" she called, and I heard her light footsteps as she ran to catch up with me. I couldn't help but to look over my shoulder at the girl and give a faint smile before I looked ahead, away from her, once more. It wouldn't do for her to know too much about my enjoying her company... when she wasn't talking, that is.

---

These days, such memories of those events bring a smile to my face... when I am no longer actually studying. I remember when she was talking with Lucius one day. It was just so hilarious, to hear her call the monk an 'adorable girl, just like she was!' I walked away laughing that day without hearing the whole story, but by Elimine, I had never laughed so hard in my life! Of course, now I cannot tell if I was laughing about the fact that she thought that Lucius was a girl, or that she called herself an adorable girl. It just blends in, these days.

Another day, Sain had come up to her and attempted to woo the cleric once again. It had been rather funny, watching her allow his advances until a certain point had obviously been reached, and then she teased him into leaving her alone. She seemed to spare glances in my direction as she spoke to him- was she trying to impress me with her 'charm', perhaps, and its inner workings upon our lout of a cavalier? A rather unusual tactic, it seemed to me, but strangely enough it did have some small effect on me... More than I let her know, of course. I was not about to show her that I didn't like how Sain had been flirting with her, after all. The mage just letting his feelings be known by others? Not very likely, not in the slightest!

---

It was in the battle a few days afterwards that she came up to speak with me again. We were in the back of Mark's formation, providing support for the other troops that were ahead of us, attacking the main forces of the Black Fang. Serra was smiling sweetly, and I steeled myself for another barrage of very strange logic. It didn't take long.

"Hi, Erk." she said, almost quietly, and that stopped the wheels from turning in my head. I had to wait for a moment before the cogs started moving once more, but then I looked to her with a small smile.

"Mm? You again?" I asked, though I did say it in a jovial tone. The cleric looked shocked and then got huffy at me as I took a step back and prepared for the inevitable onslaught of her voice. Again!

"What have you been doing?" she asked me, and I was once again, as seems to be normal these days, confused. I was doing what Mark instructed me to do. Guarding this cleric when no one else would actually do the job. Except maybe Sain, but Serra had made it obvious that she wasn't very keen on the idea of having that womanizer around. After all, his advances towards Fiora seemed to be going favorably well, strangely enough. Or was it Rebecca? Ah, the man just never would be able to make up his mind. Serra tapped her foot on the ground a few times before continuing on again. "You're supposed to protect me! So hurry up and start protecting!"

I was bewildered for a moment. I had taken it upon myself to remain close to her, but my magic had been needed to deal with some wyvern riders now that we were in Bern. "Why should I have to protect you?" I asked, more teasing the cleric than anything else. "I have not been ordered to do so."

"Pfff! What are you talking about? My orders are good enough!" she exclaimed, and I groaned- there was a wyvern rider in the distance, and it looked like he was watching us with evil intent. At the least, the javelin he had in hand glistened in the sunlight, but I made a point to look back to Serra and smile slightly.

"Look, I don't think you understand..." I began, but was cut off almost immediately. I was certain that she didn't understand at all, now!

"Well, someone would have ordered you to eventually, anyway..." she began, and I groaned softly. Sweet Elimine, save me from this girl's insanity and naivete combined! The combination was destroying any logic she may have had at one point and attempting to defeat mine now! "Both Lord Eliwood and Lord Hector are captivated by my charm..." she continued. Oh great, her flawed logic is continuing? "So, wait... wouldn't that make me this army's... leader?" she said, and I groaned again. My head hurts... but no, it wasn't over yet. I could imagine that if that wyvern rider was listening to us, that he would laugh so hard that he'd fall right off his mount! "Wow, I didn't even know I had that kind of power!"

I had to put an end to this flawed logic quickly- that wyvern rider was heading towards us rather quickly, after all, and I certainly didn't like the look of his javelin as he hefted it in his hand. "Ahem... You are a member of House Ostia, are you not? So why are you putting on such airs?" I asked her. She seemed to grow a little quiet at that question, and then I smiled a little, sparing her a glance before I spoke again. "In some ways... I actually envy you..." I told her now, my voice quiet as I watched the wyvern rider swoop around Rebecca and Dorcas ahead of us.

"Oh, really?" she asked, and I couldn't spare a moment to look back to her because of the oncoming attacker. "Well, it's always nice to receive compliments..." and I rolled my eyes as the wyvern rider stopped, hovering in midair at a distance away from me. I readied my Thunder Tome and opened it, ready to attack when he came in range finally.

"I really do envy you..." I said quietly, and there was no response as I began chanting the words from the book to send a thunderbolt crashing down upon my enemy, who just fell from the sky and landed in a heap in front of us. Yes, at that time, I did envy her.

---

Oh yes, by this time my heart was becoming heavier when I was around the cleric. I didn't really bother speaking to anyone, and in fact had to beat Sain away with an old Tome several times when he confronted me about Serra. "You really like her, don't you?" he would ask. "Come now, you cannot hide the truth from me. I can tell a smitten man when I see one!" and he would continue to say this, time and time again! It was even worse because I was in the same tent as he was in... Sheesh, I would almost prefer to be in the same tent as Bartre, if it wasn't for the fact that he would probably use my books as a way to keep Canas from using, as he says, 'hard words.'

Mark called me into his tent one night after that battle, and gave me a rather intriguing gift. I knew what it was, but let the tactician explain the item to me. "A Guiding Ring. It is all yours." and he told me about what it did for mages. I nodded and thanked him, and then put it on. It took a moment to allow the ring's affects to wash over me, but then it was done. I was a Sage now! I was told to go get a Heal staff from Merlinus, and that I would have new duties starting with the next battle. Little was I to know how unfortunate such new duties would entail until that time...

Of course, I caught many such conversations between Serra and others. Once, I caught her and Oswin talking about a prayer she had offered on the battlefield. Retainers and gold and fun jobs? Hah! Oswin reprimanded her for that one several times... so harshly that even I felt sorry for the poor girl. Then, one day I found her doing something quite unexpected in the woods. She was all alone, my favorite little cleric. Wait... favorite? I suppose so, since she was the only cleric in the group. "Serra? What is the matter this time?" I asked her, and she turned to me with a bright smile.

Unfortunately for her, a bright smile cannot blind me to the fact that there were streaks of moisture along her cheeks, leading from her red eyes. She had been crying, for some reason. "Oh... Erk... I, ah, wasn't crying! I just had some dust in my eyes." she told me, and I shook my head slowly. There was no breeze, and there hadn't been any today. In fact, it had rained a little while ago. It was a bad lie, and we both knew it. But in her eyes was pain as well, and that was what began to trouble me more than anything else.

"There is something troubling you, Serra. Now speak of it and have your peace." I told her. I was actually concerned about the conceited cleric, for once. She looked to me and seemed to smile even more brightly, if that was possible, but I could tell there was more to her than just that disarming smile of hers. "Come now. If you can't tell a servant about a problem, who can you tell, hm?" I said. Ack... I'd just called myself a servant, to her, of all people! Of course, by now it was simply a joke and nothing more at this point, but knowing Serra...

"You are no mere servant, Erk. You're my vassal! Mine, and mine alone! I know that your retainer from that hussy Priscilla has expired by now. I am sure that Lord Eliwood and Mark will see to it that you are set up as my escort for now on, I just know it!" she told me, and I just rolled my eyes. She saw this and laughed, and then winced. I saw this and immediately looked to her side from where I stood behind her. There was her hand, holding something to her side. After a second longer, I realized that she was simply holding some sort of bandage to herself.

"You're wounded? What happened? Were you attacked?" I asked. I had been left out of the most recent battle by Mark, since he noticed I was not feeling all too well beforehand. I found out then that a tactician's eyes miss very little, if anything at all. The concern in my voice was apparent, and Serra nodded slowly. It was unusual that she hadn't healed herself, but a cleric in Elimine's order was to heal others, not themselves. They could not use a staff to heal themselves, and I realized now that she must not have had a vulnerary available. "Here." I said, and pulled out a vial of the healing fluid that was handed out to most of us. Then I remembered that now that I was able to use staves, I had no idea as to the instruction of their use.

It took a moment, but then I steeled myself, resigning myself to the fact that it needed to be done. "On second thought, lend me your staff, Serra." I told the woman. She looked shocked, as if she hadn't noticed the change about my appearance and strength until just now. Indeed, it had been rather subtle. She nodded demurely, for once rather quiet as she pulled the staff from her side and offered the healing item to me. Then, it was my turn to blush.

Our hands brushed against one another as I held the vial to her, and she reached to take it. A blush appeared upon her cheeks, and from the burning that I felt on mine, I was certain that I was blushing as well as I took the staff from her hand. Though being hurt as a result of battle was thought of by clerics as a result of experience, it was folly not to allow themselves to heal themselves, though they could heal each other. "Ah... Serra? I know not of the way to use a staff. Perhaps you might... well..." I trailed off, cheeks crimson as I looked to the ground between the two of us.

She smiled softly, as if watching a child, and nodded slightly at those words that I left unsaid. "Erk, all you need to do is let your strength flow through it. Let the jewel on the top of the staff be a beacon for your power, but focus instead on a gentle warmth, rather than a raging inferno." she told me, and I watched her before I nodded in agreement. The way she said it made me think of the picture book that Lord Pent had given me, long ago, after I had collapsed as a result of studying too much.

"Very well... like this?" I asked, and closed my eyes as I held the staff up and towards her, slightly. I felt my energies pool within me and then gather from my body to the blue jewel of the Heal staff that I held in my hand. But then, as I felt it pool, my concentration collapsed. It was a much different feeling, to try and heal a comrade than it was to try and harm another. But it wasn't made easier when I felt Serra's hand on mine, her fingertips trailing against the fingers of mine that held the staff clutched within my palm.

"No. More like this." she said, and smiled a little. She was not putting on airs this time, as she guided me closer to her and then pulled me even closer. My heart... was it to break like glass that had been struck by Bartre? It was beating so quickly! My breathing became more difficult as I watched her eyes close and I could feel her breath against my cheek. Suddenly, the aura of the staff flared to life as, for the first time, my lips met the touch of another's. She gasped, and I drew back slowly her fingers releasing mine as she obviously felt the healing magic course through her wounded side.

"Erk!" came a call from the camp, and I sighed softly as I turned to return to it.

"Next time, if you need a vulnerary, or healing for that matter... just call for me, Serra." I told her, sighing softly at the tender moment that had been interrupted between us. It was the only tender moment I remembered fully enjoying with the cleric, and I smiled softly to her as she opened her eyes. Both of our cheeks remained red for a while after that, and as I turned to head back into camp, I could not help but to imagine that I had heard her say something to me in return.

"Yes, like that." was the first that I thought I had heard. I was relatively certain about it. Then, I heard something else. I think. "Thank you..." was the whispered reply. Or had I imagined it? It became something for me to think about after that point- and think about fondly.

In the next battle, I was given my newest assignment. Supporting healer?! Was this Mark's idea of a joke? Of course, now Serra was around in this battle as well, and she just couldn't stop fidgeting. Wait... after more careful consideration, and the fact that she was moving all around me, it seemed more like she was dancing than just able to keep herself out of trouble! "Serra, could you please stop moving around so much? It's hard enough protecting you when you stand still..." I asked her, commenting as well as I watched her come to a halt almost frighteningly close to me. It was so eerie... why was she so happy? Was it possibly because she remembered what had passed the other day between us?

"What's the matter, Mr. Frumpy-Face?" she asked, and my eyes went wide in shock. Frumpy-face? I'd never heard of such a phrase before, but the tone she said it in was surely a jesting one. "Well, at least you've started taking my orders..." and that was all I needed to hear. Someone truly had to put this girl into her place... I couldn't help but to glance down to the ground at my feet- there were no enemies nearby, and now I had to respond to her.

"...Look, it wasn't your order..." I began, and glanced up to her as I felt a hand on my shoulder. My cheeks turned a little red as I made eye contact with the cleric, and then I glanced away again. "I was actually instructed to guard you by someone in authority. And nothing else, got it?" I told her. But that last part didn't even sound convincing to me. And if that was the case, then what would she say about it?

"Oh, don't act like you don't love the chance to stay by my side! Come on, don't fight it..." she teased, coming rather close to my ear as she said that. Oh, by Elimine, did she know what she was doing to my resolve to try and stay objective towards her? I'll just bet she " was my only response, but said so quietly that she would only just barely hear that word. Oh yeah, great. Now the cleric would know how I feel. And it was such a bother to keep my feelings away from her! At least now that the secret was gone, I would feel better... right? I hope so!

"I knew it!" she cried, and started to dance around me once again. My free hand clenched as I watched her spin about me as if she were Ninian on a leash. Gods, could she not just stay in one place? "My beauty should be a crime!" she said, and mentally I added that her voice should be as well. "Ah, but poor Erk, it must be hard on you... Surely Eliwood and Hector despise you for getting the chance to be with me like this..." she continued to tease, and I groaned, my free hand now coming up to place my palm against my forehead gently. By Elimine... was she about finished now? Not at all! "They might send you to the front line to die, even!" she cried, coming to a stop in front of me, and I glanced at her.

She wore an impish smile, and I felt an urge to defeat her attempt at levity boil up inside of me. "I am not too worried about that." I replied. Ha! Take that, Serra, and stop moving around! She looked at me with eyes filled with confusion, as if she was trying to figure out my cryptic remark. Of course, I did not truly wish to harm her feelings, but she did need to stop prancing about and making herself a target. She was not a bishop yet, after all, and despite what I had said over a year ago, could not actually protect herself from attack. Not yet.

"...Hm. Now what kind of an answer is that?" she began, speaking slowly as she brought one finger to her chin, tapping in thought. Her pink curls bounced as she nodded her head once before smiling again. "You must not understand the power I have over men!" she exclaimed, and I closed my eyes as I mentally counted to myself. One... Two... Three... "Now, listen closely, and I'll explain from the beginning..." I was still counting, up to seven when my eyes snapped open and I just laid into her verbally.

"That's enough!" I cried, getting into the pink haired girl's face. "Why do you pester me constantly?!" I countered her words, looking into the annoying cleric's eyes. Wasn't she getting it? Was the picture not painted to the point of perfection yet? "If you hate me so, why be around me!?" I asked now. By Elimine... was I almost in tears? I think I very nearly was, to tell the truth. The same fire began to burn in the cleric's eyes, and then I stepped back, my body heaving as I attempted to regain my composure.

"Don't say that!" she told me, her finger that had been tapping her chin now stabbing at my chest. "I'm the only one here who understand your dark, secretive personality!" she told me. Well... that was not quite true. Lord Pent and Lady Louise knew me quite well, after all. But she wasn't finished, not yet! "You're likely to starve to death or get hurt and die if I don't look after you!" she told me, and then things began to fully fall into place, as if pieces of a puzzle were only now finally making sense. "I just stay by your side, to make sure that doesn't happen!"

I blinked, and then smiled softly, a warm smile meant only for Serra, who watched the smile spread on my face. She just watched me, shocked as I had expected her to be, before I spoke to her once more. "It's the same with me. People find you so annoying, they probably wouldn't look for you if you disappeared..." I told her, and then I placed my palm against her cheek as I saw moisture begin to well within her eyes. "So, I stay with you, to make sure you don't..." I trailed off, my voice becoming quieter as I watched the tears begin to flow from her eyes.

"You..." she began, sniffling afterwards as she set her cheek against my palm lightly. "You... don't mean that..." and then I shook my head slowly, still smiling that same smile to the normally ever-happy cleric. I didn't ever want to see her cry again, and this time, I had made her cry. But it wasn't tears of pain that slid along her cheeks, I knew. Even I could tell the difference, despite my time I had spent mostly reading and studying.

"It's no worse than what you said!" I told her, and then I embraced the girl. My arms slipped around her slender body and squeezed her gently to mine. It took a moment, but the cleric of Elimine slid her arms around my waist and we held each other for a short moment. I could feel her tears against my neck, and I sighed softly. This would have to do, for now. There was a battle to be waged, but at least this one battle had been postponed... until, at least, after the physical battle was dealt with.

---

"Erk!" I heard my name called, and I snapped out of my reverie. Oh, Elimine... not her, please, not her! Not here! What did the devil in pink hair want this time? I practically flew from where I had been sitting and to a small corner of the library, hiding myself underneath a table that was almost surrounded by books I had read long ago. Please, Elimine, don't let her find me here...

"Darn it, where is Erk? We were supposed to go for a walk, but no... I bet he's tidying up. He spends so much time in here, he knows I like going with him around the town. Ah, the favors that I bestow on that young man..." the familiar voice went, and he heard the soft footsteps come closer. From between piles of books, he watched as a white-dressed figure came closer, and then past him. Dammit!

And then there was a painful tug on his ear. "Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow!" the captured Sage cried out as he was tugged out from his hiding spot. And then he was lifted up by the ear by the same two fingers that had his ear pinched rather harshly. In front of him was the woman that had captured his heart during the battles of a time ago when he could not stand her!

"As much as I like this game, playing it everytime I come to get you does indeed get tedious, my vassal! Let's go, move it, double-time! Get cleaned up and then we're going out!" Serra told him, and let go of his ear before she winked to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "At least you receive that as your reward each time, right?" she asked, and then she just seemed to step back and wink playfully to the man she loved as well. Erk smiled a little, even while rubbing his now red ear, and nodded before he wandered off towards the door to the library to get to his room and change. Damned woman, he thought to himself. I wouldn't give her up for all the knowledge and magic in the world.

---

Author's Note: Well now, I hope this was light-hearted enough for everyone. Hehe. I know I had fun with this fic, and I took my time with it. Funny, I finished this and another in a single day! It wasn't very easy, coming up with details for the instances between these two. Please, leave a review!

Tron Bonne: Get to work on Battle for Terra!

MacrossGreen: Dammit Tron, leave me alone! I need to get to the Shala-Kun ruins so I can plan out that part of the fic first, so leave me in peace!

Tron: Then get to the ruins, you lazy author, and get to work!

MacrossGreen: sigh Don't make me hand you over to Bartre... I'm sure he could help you with your machines. evil grin

Tron: Who's Bartre?

MacrossGreen: points over to a man who is repeatedly punching rocks as Canas provides all sorts of 'hard words' for the man to want to forget. That's Bartre.

Tron: backs up, afraid for her life, family, and newly created machines Um... I'll be good! Just don't let him get near my Kobuns or the Gustaff 3!

Bartre: Hard words! punches a boulder

MacrossGreen: Sorry all. Two points if you can place the game where Tron Bonne is from! 


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